


The Rhythm of Her Breath

by Smokeycut



Category: New Mutants, X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Insomnia, Late night movie watching, so much cuddling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-05
Updated: 2018-02-05
Packaged: 2019-03-14 09:26:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13587165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Smokeycut/pseuds/Smokeycut
Summary: Dani can't sleep, but she's not the only one. She and Xi'an can't think of anything better to do than watch an old movie. At first, anyways...





	The Rhythm of Her Breath

Dani stretched out, digging her toes into the throw pillow at the other end of the couch. One arm was resting on her stomach, the other dangling off the edge of the couch, holding the tv remote and flipping through channels. Her hair, tied in a pair of braids as usual, hung over her shoulders. It was dark out, late enough that everyone else was in bed and nothing good was on. Just infomercials and surreal cartoons. She considered getting up and rifling through the DVD shelf for something to watch, but decided the payoff wasn't worth the effort. 

What made this night so different from all the other lonely late nights was the hallway light flicking on, followed by the sound of footsteps. Dani craned her head around, peering out over the back of the couch, and saw her fellow insomniac, wearing just a loose top and a pair of pajama shorts. 

"Xi'an? What are you doing up?" Dani asked, turning back to the aerobics program she had been busy tuning out.

"Can't sleep," Xi'an said, circling around to the other side of the couch. Dani curled up so Xi'an could take a seat. "Why don't you just watch a movie?" She asked, pointing her thumb at the shelf and leering at the tv. 

Dani sighed and tore herself from the sofa, walking over to the shelf and sitting down on the carpeted floor as Xi'an joined her. DVD after DVD was suggested and shot down by one of the girls or the other, until they were surrounded by piles of scattered cases.

"50 First Dates?"

"Ugh, no. No Adam Sandler. What about Alien?"

"I'm not into sci fi. The Neverending Story?"

"Isn't that a kid's movie? Here, let's watch Tron."

"I never liked that one."

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

"The Warriors?"

"No. Definitely no."

Eventually, there was just one movie left on the shelf. Dani reached for it at the same time as Xi'an, and their fingers brushed together as they both tried to grab it. Xi'an quickly pulled her hand away and let it rest in her lap, trying to quell the butterflies in her stomach. She had thought that she was out of the woods when her crush on Kitty had faded, but then she began noticing Dani. The way she walked, the way she laughed, her passion and the fire that always seemed to burn inside of her. She had become the cause of Xi'an's sleepless nights.

"We're down to Nightmare On Elm Street," Dani said, pulling the DVD from the shelf. "How does that sound?"

"Oh. I've never seen it," Xi'an admitted, trying to keep her voice steady.

"There is no way I'm letting that stand. Don't worry, if you get scared I don't mind holding you," Dani teased with a smirk. She turned away and set to work putting the movie on before Xi'an's blushing became noticeable. By the time Dani turned back to her friend, Xi'an was already on the couch, sitting on her hands and glancing away from the girl of her desires.

Dani sat down just inches away from Xi'an, her fingertips dangerously close to Xi'an's thigh. The piracy warnings and advertisements for movies that had been released years ago were just background noise as Xi'an tried to control her blushing cheeks. She could see Dani's fingertips. She could see the digits tiptoe closer to her bare thigh. Her breath hitched as Dani's fingers stopped suddenly and pulled back a bit. It was only when Xi'an realized that she was holding her breath that she reminded herself not to pass out in front of her teammate. Her terribly pretty teammate, with beautiful brown braids and soft cheeks and....

And she needed to breathe before her own cheeks turned blue. Xi'an looked at her lap and began to twiddle her fingers, hoping that she could just push the thoughts out of her mind. Thankfully, the movie was beginning, and she knew that she could just get absorbed into it and forget all about how strong Dani's arms were and how her jawline was sharp enough to cut glass and...

"So what is this about again?" Xi'an blurted out the question, starting to get sick of her own wandering thoughts. Unfortunately, she blurted it just a bit too loud for a midnight conversation, making Dani jump. Both girls quickly checked to make sure nobody had been woken up before Dani answered. The last thing they wanted was for Magneto, their eternally frustrated headmaster, to chastise them for staying up so late on a school night.

"This creepy serial killer gets burned alive, then comes back as a monster who haunts people in their dreams. If he kills you in your dream, you die in real life. It's one of the classic slasher movies," Dani explained. She looked at Xi'an and adjusted her position, stretching out and getting more comfortable on the sofa. "It's pretty cheesy though," she added.

It was after the first death-causing dream that Xi'an realized that her sleepwear wasn't enough to keep her warm without blankets, and she had left her's in her bedroom. Dani, noticing that Xi'an had begun to shiver, reached for the blanket that was folded over the back of the couch.

"Cold?" She asked.

"Yeah, kinda." Xi'an watched as Dani draped the knit wool blanket over herself. Dani lifted the blanket, making room for Xi'an to join her under it. Xi'an's mind had been racing all night, but in that moment it went blank. She curled up in front of Dani and couldn't think of a single thing to say as Dani wrapped her arms around Xi'an, pulling her in closer.

"Me too."

With every scare that came, Dani gave Xi'an a gentle squeeze. Xi'an could tell that it was just as much caused by Dani's fear as it was by her instinctive desire to protect her friends. She couldn't tell that it was in fact primarily caused by Dani's desire just to hold the girl who she had found to be utterly intoxicating for months. 

"Mon Dieu," Xi'an gasped upon seeing one of the film's most memorable scenes. One of the killer's victims was sucked into his own bed, and the results of his death were launched out in the form of a geyser. Xi'an's stomach turned, and she clamped a hand over her own mouth in shock. Dani guided Xi'an to turn her around, so that her back was to the tv and she was facing her crush. 

Xi'an instinctively nestled into Danielle. She hadn't expected to find any scenes in the old film startling, and once her gaze was broken away from it she found herself calming quickly. She looked up, and saw Dani looking down at her, and both of the girls felt their breath hitch as their eyes locked. Dani's steely amber eyes, more guarded than harsh. Xi'an's were a gentle dark brown, almost black, and always so easy to get lost in. The girls found themselves leaning in closer to one another, the movie fading away into the background. All they could see was one another.

Xi'an was the one who cemented the moment. She wrapped an arm around Dani and pulled herself up to eye level, then leaned in and pressed her lips against her friend's. As far as first kisses go, she could have had far worse, and not many better. Dani leaned into the kiss immediately, not needing to rationalize it one bit. She found Xi'an cute, and clearly Xi'an liked her, so why pull away? No, she pulled Xi'an in close and kept it going. When they broke for air, Dani placed a second kiss on Xi'an's cheek. Xi'an nuzzled Dani, and purred as Dani pulled the blanket back up over her body. 

Neither one of them had much trouble sleeping after that. Holding one another as they were, they felt safer and more secure than ever before. Any and all fears or nagging anxieties were swept away, and they fell asleep whispering in each other's ears. It was Magneto who found them the next morning, tangled up in each other's arms and legs and the shared blanket. He reminded them that sleeping on the couch was bad for their backs, and that the students weren't allowed to stay up on a school night to watch movies, but they noticed that he didn't threaten them with detention like he normally would. They didn't really care either way, though. They shared stolen glances and held hands throughout the day's lessons, and once their time was freed, they met up outside the mansion's front door. 

"So..." Dani said.

"So..." Xi'an repeated, flashing a smile.

Dani chuckled and reflected the smile, before continuing. "You wanna try watching another movie tonight? It's Friday, so we probably won't get in any trouble..." 

"Works for me," Xi'an said, reaching over and intertwining her fingers with Dani's. "But unless we want to look through the same pile of movies again, we might want to run up to the store to buy another one. Or do you want to watch 50 First Dates?"

"Ugh, no. Just no. Not in a million years, Xi'an." The look of exaggerated disgust on Dani's face was one of the highlights of Xi'an's day. It was beaten out by the kiss they shared as they walked to town to find another movie.


End file.
